ABSTRACT
This chapter examines the politics of Genocide recognition and related historiography. The problem of Turkish-Armenian relations has the dubious distinction of being emotionally wrenching, politically explosive, and intellectually challenging. For accountants of history, the implication is that Turks killed because it is their nature to do so, and it is the manifestation of that evil nature that must be highlighted. Turkish writers in this category have a more difficult task: they cannot describe a nonevent. However, they can hope to dissipate serious transgressions, especially in the last decades of the Ottoman Empire, in idealized descriptions of the Ottoman administrative genius and spirit of tolerance and in repetitions of a listing of vile Armenian intentions and fifth column activities. Armenian political parties considered a Turkish recognition of the Genocide as the first step and the legal basis for territorial demands from Turkey.
